The Legal System UK.ppt

 Common law
 Statute law
 Most European countries: civil law (codified) system
 England: common law, i.e. no major codification; judicial
precedents are binding
Prof. Tatjana Panova-Ignjatovik, PhD 2

 Oldest source
 Decisions have formed precedents from which later judges
can deduce principles of law that may be applied to new
cases.
 Doctrine of precedent > strong in English law
 The power of creating new precedents is reserved to the
Supreme Court of the UK

 His Majesty's Court Service (HMCS)
 In both civil and criminal cases the system is adversarial:
 the defence vs. the prosecution (Crown Prosecution Service)
 The court hears evidence (incl. witnesses) and makes a
decision:
 in criminal cases, whether the defendant is guilty or not
guilty.

 Criminal and civil courts
 Two levels of criminal courts:
 Lower: Magistrates’ court – суд за прекршоци
(summary offences)
 Higher: Crown court (indictable offences) – кривични
дела
Prof. Tatjana Panova-Ignjatovik, PhD
5

 Over 90% of cases are dealt with in magistrates' courts.
 Magistrates or Justices of the Peace (JPs) are 'respected' local
citizens appointed by a committee (lay people, not trained
lawyers)
 A panel of three magistrates decides on guilt or innocence
and imposes a punishment (imprisonment up to a year or a
fine).
 There are no juries.

 Two types:
 JPs and stipendiary
magistrates
 Justices of the Peace
-JPs:
 part-time officials
 hear cases without a jury
 receive no salary (only
expenses)
 no extensive legal
training (lay justices)
 Stipendiary Magistrates:
 Qualified lawyers
 Paid by the state
 Sit alone to hear and
decide a case
 c.a. 63 of them, mainly in
large cities

 Date from 1327: legal system in which the ordinary
person is judged by other citizens rather than by
professionals
 Magistrates > appointed by the Crown, on advice of
Lord Chancellor
 Limited power of punishment: fines up to £ 2000 or
prison max. one year
 Handle civil matters:
 family proceedings, divorce, road traffic violations;
 license applications for public amenities
(restaurants, clubs, pubs, betting shops)
 Criminal cases – offenders aged between the ages of
10 and 17 9

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeNDacwO5NA

 County Courts are statutory courts with a purely civil jurisdiction.
 They are presided over by either a District or Circuit Judge and (except
in a small minority of cases such as civil actions against the Police) the
judge sits alone without assistance from a jury.
 County courts have divorce jurisdiction and undertake private family
cases, care proceedings and adoptions.

 County Courts are local courts >
 certain kinds of jurisdiction - such as actions concerning land
or cases concerning children who reside in the area.
 E.g., proceedings for possession of land must be started in
the county court in whose district the property lies.

 A crown court deals with indictable offences: e.g. robbery,
rape, murder
 Involves a jury of 12 people selected at random
 At least 10 of them must agree to reach a verdict:
 Innocence or guilt
 If verdict not reached > the judge declares a mistrial

Central Criminal Court in London
 Тhe figure on the dome of the building
holding the scales of justice - symbol of
justice in a free society.

 Two parties to a trial: the defendant and the plaintiff / тужител/
 The defendant may be convicted or acquitted
 The judge controls the trial and decides what evidence is
admissible, and pronounces sentence on those convicted.
 Awaiting trial, the person charged may be granted bail (someone
has to stand bail for them) or held on remand /во притвор/

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZYvv_s5R-s

 A convicted person may appeal to the Court of Criminal
Appeal (Appeal Court) to get the conviction quashed or the
punishment reduced.
 The highest court is the UK Supreme Court.

 The Court of Appeal consists of two divisions:
1. the Civil Division hears appeals from the High Court
and County Court and certain superior tribunals
1. The Criminal Division may only hear appeals from
the Crown Court connected with a trial on indictment
(i.e. trial by judge and jury ).
 Its decisions are binding on all courts apart from the
Supreme Court.

 Divided in 3 divisions:
1. Queen’s Bench Division: contracts, recovery of land
and property, and negligence cases
2. Chancery Division: commercial, financial and
succession matters
3. Family Division: marriage, divorce, custody of
children, family property

 UK Supreme Court – since 2009
 Formerly – House of Lords
 The judicial function of Parliament
transferred to the UK Supreme Court
from 1 October 2009.
 Justices of the Supreme Court
 The 12 Lords ofAppeal in Ordinary
(the Law Lords)
 They are disqualified from sitting or
voting in the House of Lords.

 Presided over by 5 Law Lords
 Vote on whether to accept or
dismiss an appeal
 Around 1,500 appeals every
year

 Different legal system,
 a mixture of civil law and Roman law
 Verdict of 'not proven' in criminal cases
 Scottish juries have 15 members
 Scottish barristers are called advocates
 Criminal courts: District Court, Sheriff Court, High Court
of Justiciary
 Civil courts: SheriffCourt, Court of Session, Outer House,
Inner House, House of Lords

 Generally follows the system in England andWales
 Special DIPLOCK COURTS:
 Deal with cases against terrorism
 Single judge decides without a jury

 unconditional discharge – for a first or minor offence
 conditional discharge – must not re-offend within specific
period (further offence, this one taken into account)
 on probation – must report to a probation officer
 fine – for minor offences
 community service
 imprisonment – for more serious crimes; prisoners get
remission for good behaviour
 life sentence – for murder or treason (ca. 20 yrs)
 death penalty or capital punishment – last carried out in
1964, abolished in 1969 for murder, and for treason in
1998

 The legal profession in England andWales is divided between:
 Solicitor (правен застапник)
 Barrister (парничар)
 Both are trained in law but serve differing functions in the
practice of law.

 Solicitors handle everyday legal matters such as wills, divorce and
legal contracts, also present cases in lower courts.
 Solicitors have to pass the Law Society exam (правосуден испит)
 Prepare while articled to a firm of solicitors
 Solicitors must also pass professional examinations
 and serve a two-year period of apprenticeship (стажирање) called
‘articles’ in a solicitor’s office.
 Once qualified in this way, a newly admitted solicitor is supervised for
three years.
 Present cases in the lower courts.

 Barristers only present cases in
higher courts.
 Experts on general principles of
law,
 in public speaking and argument.
 Wear the traditional wig and gown

 Barristers have to attend one of
the four Inns of Court in London.
 Тhen they are called to the bar.
 After several years of working
(apprenticeship or ‘pupillage’)
with a senior barrister they apply
to take silk.
 Become KC (King’s Council) –
кралски адвокат

 The introduction of wigs into polite
society - in the reign of Charles II (1660-85)
 After a period of disapproval, wigs were
generally assumed by lawyers in the
1680s.
 By the middle of the 17th century wigs of
powdered white or grey hair were the
universal custom
 Gown and wig > emphasize the
impersonal majesty of the law

 Judges are appointed from among barristers - for life and may
only be dismissed by Parliament.
 A judge is a crucial figure in the trial system.
 He or she supervises the conduct of the trial and passes
sentence on those who have been convicted.
 Judges are normally appointed from practising barristers
(advocates in Scotland) or solicitors
 and must have at least 10 years professional standing.

 Very serious offences are
tried on indictment only
by the Crown Court.
 The Crown Court sits in
about 94 centres in
England andWales.

 Court Charades (aka Not Guil-Cup) -
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgAvBaT9zmA
 https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6qgleh

 There are 52 police forces in Britain, mainly organised on a
local basis.
 The Metropolitan Police Force and the City of London force
are responsible for policing London.
 Each force in England andWales is responsible to a police
authority consisting of local councillors, magistrates and
independent members.

 Since April 1996 the police authority in Scotland comprises four joint
police boards made up of local councillors.
 The police force in Northern Ireland, the Royal Ulster Constabulary,
is responsible to an independent police authority appointed by the
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

 For historical reasons, the Home Secretary is responsible for
London’s Metropolitan Police Force (The ‘Met’), advised by
the Metropolitan Police Committee.
 For the City of London Police the authority is a committee of
the Corporation of London.

 Over 50 local forces or constabularies
 Certain departments of the Metropolitan Police (the Met)
operate throughout the country, e.g. the Anti-Terrorist Branch
 the Special Branch (works with Security Service or MI5 and
Secret Intelligence Service or MI6)
 New ScotlandYard is the headquarters of the Met's Criminal
Investigation Department (CID)

 chief constable,
 (chief) superintendent,
 (chief) inspector,
 sergeant,
 constable [may be preceded by
detective]

 They are in constant contact with the public.
 They patrol the streets on foot, or in cars, give advice and deal
with disturbances.
 The police are closely involved in setting up ‘neighbourhood
watch’ schemes,
 advising residents on home security,
 encouraging residents to keep an eye on properties in their
area and pass on information to the police about suspicious
people or vehicles.

 Traditional image: local
'bobby' on the beat,
wearing his helmet, always
unarmed
 Police established in 18th c.
by Robert Peel > police
officers - ‘Bobbies’

 Usually uniformed police
officers carry a truncheon
or baton to protect
themselves against
violence.

 In England, Scotland
andWales firearms may
be issued only to
specially trained police
officers, known as
Authorised Firearms
Officers,
 and then only on the
authority of a senior
officer.

 Most forces in England andWales operate a system of armed
response vehicles – patrol cars,
 which carry weapons in a locked box – to provide a speedy
initial response to a firearm incident.
 Because of terrorist campaigns in Northern Ireland, members
of the Royal Ulster Constabulary carry firearms for personal
protection.

 Further reading: O'Driscoll ch. 11

The Legal System UK.ppt

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The Legal System UK.ppt